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Libraries: is yours quiet? do your children know to be quiet?

My local library is one of the noisiest places ever. Internet was down on my boat, I needed to take an online test so I headed to my local library. Hoped it would be quiet because usually it is a rather noisy library.

Today was no exception. Not only were children running and squealing and using "outdoor voices", two mothers were talking so loud that even though I was 30 feet away from them, their dinner plans, their friend in the hospital's condition, and their opinions of their daughters' recital costumes were made known to me. The librarians also were talking loudly to each other and to those who were checking out books. At one point a mother shouted across the room for her daughter to come to the check out counter.

I was pretty dumbfounded at the decibel level.

I left without complaint upon completing my test and returning my books.

Were libraries quiet when you were growing up? We used to have librarians that told us to hush if we were speaking in anything above a whisper. You could have heard the pages of other books turning at libraries in college or in my hometown.

What is going on? This was my dozenth or so visit and it is always noisy.
I would like to complain.

People do not feel the need to be respectful of others quite time at the library. My kids know to be quite or I will take them outside and swat their bottoms. Then when they are done crying (even though it is never hard enough to hurt), we go back in.

Yeah, I've noticed that libraries aren't quiet places anymore. Even the librarians seem to speak loudly. My current library had a giant place for kids, but it's located in a way that doesn't bother the grown-up side. A woman was in there with her crying baby the other day and didn't leave. I was really getting annoyed. Seriously, I don't know if there's any respect left in this world anymore.

The main lobby and childrens area are on the main floor. You can talk down there but not use phones. The upper level is adult books and the computer area. (not adult as in porn, just bigger books LOL) You can only whisper up there and if your phone even rings the librarians will hunt you down!

by Anonymous 1
on Feb. 27, 2014 at 8:31 PM

1 mom liked this

Quoting lulalacroix:

Yeah, I've noticed that libraries aren't quiet places anymore. Even the librarians seem to speak loudly. My current library had a giant place for kids, but it's located in a way that doesn't bother the grown-up side. A woman was in there with her crying baby the other day and didn't leave. I was really getting annoyed. Seriously, I don't know if there's any respect left in this world anymore.

I really dislike when mothers do that as well with their crying babies especially in a library.

My library is pretty quiet, with two exceptions. There is one assistant librarian who is not more than 20. She is very loud when she talks and brays like a donkey!! She's constantly being told by the other librarians to quiet down. Then, there is a family who comes in several times a week who have no idea what respect is. There are five kids, they run around, yell, throw books and will randomly start talking to you ("what are you reading, what's that picture, is that your baby, blah blah."). Otherwise "my" library is peaceful, I take my baby out when she cries or is fussy and my ds is always stuck in a book so...no noise from him! lol

My husband is a branch managing librarian and I know that he HATES quiet libraries, there is a dedicated quiet study section at his branch, which obviously is a quiet area (with sound proof glass and all) but it also has a large children's section and he has said that a few times he has had to 'correct' some people who feel the need to go around hushing others and tell them that if they want quiet, to go into the quiet area.

We, unfortunately, do not visit the library because I feel it's more of a free for all during most of the day, and it closes early three days a week, no Sunday. So there isn't a quiet period where I can teach him proper behavior that isn't too close to bedtime.

Our library is small and the librarians seem to encourage the kids being loud. They don't yell and the kids aren't allowed to run but they talk to the kids loudly so how can I tell my kids to whisper? Especially when it's ran by volunteers who are mostly older and they can't hear otherwise.
The county library they know to whisper.

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